JP2011029694A - Communication system and recovery method of the communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a communication system and the recovery method of the communication system for securing reliability of communication by quickly recovering a communication channel when the interruption of communication is generated among a plurality of radio apparatuses. <P>SOLUTION: The communication system includes: a communication adapter 1 for regularly transmitting information about a household electrical appliance 2; and a gateway device 3 which collects and arranges information transmitted by the communication adapter 1 to create a communication adapter list and regularly transmits the communication adapter list to all communication adapters 1 by broadcast. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a communication system and a communication system recovery method.

  Conventionally, regarding communication of wireless devices, when communication is interrupted due to interruption of the communication channel or failure of the wireless device due to the environment, communication devices are confirmed to be disconnected and restored. However, the confirmation and recovery here are only performed for each communication path, that is, in a relationship of one device to one device (one to one). Accordingly, when a plurality of communication paths are provided and the number of devices that perform communication increases, confirmation must be performed individually, so that confirmation takes time, and recovery takes time.

  Therefore, in the invention described in Patent Document 1, information exchange between a plurality of wireless stations provided with a plurality of communication paths is disclosed as follows.

  That is, in a wireless broadcast communication system composed of a master station and a plurality of slave stations, a representative slave station that communicates with the master station is defined among the grouped slave stations. It is assumed that information regarding reception states from other plural slave stations is received and collectively transmitted to the master station, and only the representative slave station receives communication from the master station. If a configuration in which a plurality of slave stations exist in this way and one of them is used as a representative, the master station can grasp the reception status of all the slave stations through the representative slave station. Communication reliability can be improved. In addition, as a result, the number of slave stations that are communication partners with the master station can be reduced, so that even if a situation where communication is interrupted occurs, a quick recovery can be achieved.

JP-A-4-13318

  However, the wireless broadcast communication system disclosed in Patent Document 1 does not consider the following points.

  Even if the slave stations that receive communication from the master station are grouped and one of them is designated as the representative slave station, the master station and a plurality of representative slave stations eventually have the one-to-one relationship described above. Stop on. Therefore, when a situation in which communication is interrupted occurs, it is necessary to individually check each communication path provided between a representative slave station having a plurality of master stations. Then, it takes a certain amount of time to restore the communication path. With this, communication reliability cannot be maintained.

  The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present invention is to quickly restore a communication path when a communication failure occurs between a plurality of wireless devices, and to ensure communication reliability. It is an object of the present invention to provide a communication system and a recovery method for the communication system.

  A first feature according to an embodiment of the present invention is that in a communication system, a communication adapter that periodically transmits information on home appliances, and information transmitted from the communication adapter are collected and collected to create a communication adapter list. And a gateway device that periodically transmits the communication adapter list to all the communication adapters by broadcast.

  A second feature according to the embodiment of the present invention is a communication system recovery method, wherein the communication adapter receives periodic transmission from the gateway device and starts measuring time in the time measuring means, and the communication adapter relates to the home appliance. A step of creating information as transmission data to the gateway device, a step of transmitting the created transmission data to the gateway device, and receiving the transmission data transmitted from each communication adapter, and communicating based on the transmission data A step of creating an adapter list, a step of periodically transmitting the created communication adapter list to all of the communication adapters, and a time check in the time measuring means, and a communication adapter list exceeding the set time If it is not received, it will time out and reset the communication adapter. And including a flag indicating a communication failure, a step in which the communication adapter creates information related to the home appliance as transmission data with a flag to the gateway device, and a step of transmitting the created transmission data with the flag to the gateway device. Receiving the flagged transmission data, storing the flag in the storage device, creating a communication adapter list based on the transmission data, and receiving the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device. And checking whether own transmission data exists in the list.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a communication system and a communication system recovery method capable of quickly recovering a communication path and ensuring communication reliability when a communication failure occurs between a plurality of wireless devices. Can do.

1 is an overall view showing a communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a block diagram which shows the internal structure of the communication adapter which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the flow of a recovery when the communication flow and communication failure generate | occur | produce in the communication system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the communication adapter structure information which the communication adapter which concerns on embodiment of this invention transmits. It is a schematic diagram which shows the structure of the communication adapter list | wrist which the gateway apparatus which concerns on embodiment of this invention transmits to a communication adapter.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the communication system S according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a home electric appliance 2 including a communication adapter 1 and a gateway device 3 that receives information transmitted from the communication adapter 1. An access point 4 is connected to the gateway device 3, and information transmitted wirelessly from the communication adapter 1 is transmitted to the gateway device 3 via the access point 4.

  The communication adapter 1 is a communication device that enables communication with an external device, and transmits information related to the home appliance 2 to the gateway device 3. Here, the home appliance 2 is a general term for devices installed in or outside the home, such as a refrigerator, an air conditioner, a laundry, a lighting device, or a television. Moreover, the information regarding the household electrical appliance 2 indicates information such as unique information and driving history information such as ON / OFF of the power source, driving start, and termination. The “unique information” includes, for example, information on the type of home appliance 2 (type such as an air conditioner or a refrigerator), the model number, and the installation location of the home appliance 2.

  In the communication system S shown in FIG. 1, the communication adapter 1 and the home appliance 2 are shown as being integrated, that is, the communication adapter 1 is provided in the home appliance 2. Need not be.

  In the communication system S according to the embodiment of the present invention, three sets (1A, 2A, 1B, 2B, 1C, 2C) of the communication adapter 1 and the home appliance 2 are represented, but the gateway device 3 As long as there are a plurality of communication adapters 1 (home appliances 2) for transmitting information to the device, any number may be installed. In the following, these three sets of communication adapters 1 and home appliances 2 are collectively referred to as “communication adapter 1” and “home appliance 2” as appropriate.

  When transmitting information related to the home appliance 2 from the communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3, wireless communication is used. The access point 4 transmits the information regarding each home appliance 2 transmitted wirelessly to the gateway device 3 connected by a line.

  The gateway device 3 collects information related to the home appliance 2 transmitted from the plurality of communication adapters 1 via the access point 4. The collected information is omitted here, but may be used, for example, for grasping the operation status and power consumption of each home appliance 2. In any case, the gateway device 3 is a communication termination device in the communication system S.

  FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the internal configuration of the communication adapter 1. The communication adapter 1 includes a receiving unit 1a, a determining unit 1b, a timing unit 1c, an information creating unit 1d, and a transmitting unit 1e. The receiving unit 1 a receives information transmitted from the gateway device 3, and the transmitting unit 1 e transmits information (described later) created in the communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3.

  Hereinafter, the flow of communication in the communication system S according to the embodiment of the present invention and the flow of recovery when a communication failure occurs will be described using the flowchart shown in FIG. The operation of each means of the communication adapter 1 will also be described in the flow description.

  First, transmission is performed from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1 via the access point 4 (ST1). The transmission from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1 is a trigger for the communication adapter 1 to transmit information to the gateway device 3 (hereinafter, referred to as “activation information” as appropriate). In the communication system S according to the embodiment of the present invention, transmission is not performed individually from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1, but a broadcast transmission method is employed. Therefore, transmission is simultaneously performed from the gateway device 3 to a plurality of communication adapters 1. In the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, for convenience of explanation, only two communication adapters 1 (communication adapters 1A and 1B) are shown.

  The communication adapter 1 that has received the activation information from the gateway device 3 sends the information to the determination means 1b via the reception means 1a. The determination means 1b further informs the timing means 1c that the activation information has been received, and the timing means 1c starts timing (timer activation) (ST2). This time measurement is performed to determine whether or not the information is transmitted again from the gateway device 3 to the communication adapter 1 within a predetermined time after transmitting information from the communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3 described later. If information (communication adapter list) returns from the gateway device 3 within the time counted by the time measuring means 1c, it can be determined that the communication path is normally secured. On the other hand, if it does not return, it can be determined that the communication path between the communication adapter 1 and the gateway device 3 is not open.

  At the same time, the judging means 1b instructs the information creating means 1d to create transmission data (ST3). The transmission data here includes, for example, information related to the home appliance 2 in which the communication adapter 1 is provided. FIG. 4 shows the “transmission data” to be created more specifically. In the “communication adapter configuration information” (hereinafter, “transmission data” is represented as “communication adapter configuration information”; however, in FIG. 3, it is represented as “transmission data”) shown in FIG. , “MAC address”, “IP address”, “connected device information (information on home appliance 2)”. However, the contents included in the “communication adapter configuration information” shown individually are merely examples, and any information may be included.

  When “communication adapter configuration information” is created (ST3), the communication adapter configuration information is transmitted from each communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3 (ST4). A broadcast transmission method is also employed for transmission from each communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3. However, since transmission to the gateway device 3 is performed for each communication adapter 1, the time to be transmitted is not necessarily the same for all communication adapters 1.

  The “communication adapter configuration information” transmitted from each communication adapter 1 is received by the gateway device 3. The gateway device 3 creates a “communication adapter 1 list” based on the received communication adapter configuration information from each communication adapter 1 (ST5). The gateway device 3 collects the “communication adapter configuration information” received within a predetermined time after first receiving the “communication adapter configuration information”. The predetermined time can be arbitrarily set.

  The created “communication adapter list” has contents as shown in FIG. 5, for example. That is, as described above, the “communication adapter list” includes “communication adapter configuration information” transmitted from each communication adapter. However, “communication adapter configuration information” from the communication adapter 1 that could not be received when the gateway device 3 created the “communication adapter list” is not included in this “communication adapter list”.

  The “communication adapter configuration information” that could not be included can be stored, for example, in the storage means in the gateway device 3 and reflected when the communication adapter list is created next time. Alternatively, the communication adapter configuration information that is not included in the communication adapter list may be temporarily deleted and reflected in the communication adapter list after waiting for transmission from the communication adapter 1 again.

  The “communication adapter list” created in the gateway device 3 is transmitted to each communication adapter 1 by the broadcast transmission method (ST6). Transmission of the “communication adapter list” from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1 is performed periodically. This is in order to appropriately check whether or not a communication path is secured between the gateway device 3 and each communication adapter 1. Accordingly, not only transmission from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1 but also creation of a communication adapter list is performed periodically. It should be noted that the timing at which the gateway device 3 transmits to each communication adapter 1, that is, the periodical transmission interval, can be arbitrarily set.

  A communication adapter list is appropriately transmitted between the gateway device 3 and the communication adapter 1 in which a communication path is secured. The communication adapter 1 acquires and confirms its own communication adapter configuration information from the broadcast adapter list transmitted by broadcast (ST7). The determination unit 1b obtains the communication adapter configuration information created for transmission from the information creation unit 1d to the gateway device 3, and compares it with the communication adapter configuration information in the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device 3. Thereby, it can be confirmed whether or not the communication adapter configuration information transmitted from the own communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3 matches the information transmitted from the gateway device 3. If the two communication adapter configuration information matches, it is possible to confirm that a communication path between the communication adapter 1 and the gateway device 3 is secured and information is normally exchanged.

  If a communication path is secured between each communication adapter 1 and the gateway device 3, the communication adapter list is transferred from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter 1 within the time counted by the time measuring unit 1 c of the communication adapter 1. Sent. Therefore, the determination means 1b has confirmed the communication adapter configuration information. This means that each communication adapter 1 has received the communication adapter list within the time measured by the time measuring means 1c activated in step 2 described above. Become. Accordingly, the determination unit 1b confirms the communication adapter configuration information and instructs the time measuring unit 1c to reset the time (timer reset) (ST8). After that, an instruction is given again to start timing to the timing means 1c (ST9).

  The time measurement here is for measuring the timing (interval) of periodically transmitting the communication adapter configuration information from each communication adapter 1 to the gateway device 3. Here, by starting the timer, each communication adapter 1 can periodically transmit the communication adapter configuration information to the gateway device 3.

  After the determining means 1b confirms its own communication adapter configuration information, the time measuring means 1c starts measuring time (ST7 to ST9), and when a predetermined time elapses, the determining means 1b checks the time measuring means 1c (ST10). When the predetermined time elapses, the timer unit 1c is again instructed to start timing (ST11). Then, the determination unit 1b instructs the information creation unit 1d to create communication adapter configuration information related to the communication adapter 1A (home appliance 2A). The instructed information creation means 1d creates communication adapter configuration information (ST12), and transmits it to the gateway device 3 via the transmission means 1e (ST13). By performing this flow between each communication adapter 1 and the gateway device 3, it is possible to automatically confirm whether or not the communication path between the two is regularly secured.

  The interval at which each communication adapter 1 transmits the communication adapter configuration information to the gateway device 3 and the interval at which the gateway device 3 transmits the communication adapter list to each communication adapter 1 can be arbitrarily set.

  In the flowchart shown in FIG. 3, the communication path between the communication adapter 1A and the gateway device 3 is secured. The exchange of information between the two is as described above. On the other hand, a case where a communication path is not secured between the communication adapter 1 and the gateway device 3, that is, a case where there is no communication between the two will be described using the communication adapter 1 </ b> B and the gateway device 3.

  When the gateway device 3 creates a communication adapter list (ST5) and periodically transmits to each communication adapter 1 (ST6), a communication adapter is not secured (disconnected) with the gateway device 3 In 1B, the communication adapter list transmitted by the gateway device 3 cannot be received. In the flowchart in FIG. 3, since communication between the gateway device 3 and the communication adapter 1B is interrupted, an arrow from the gateway device 3 to the communication adapter 1B is not drawn.

  As described above, the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device 3 by the communication adapter 1 can be received by the communication adapter 1 within a predetermined time. Therefore, if the communication path is not properly secured (disconnected state), the predetermined time elapsed by the time measuring unit 1c before the communication adapter list reaches the communication adapter 1B from the gateway device 3 has elapsed. End up. This time is started and timed when the communication adapter 1B transmits the communication adapter configuration information to the gateway device 3 (see ST2).

  Therefore, the determination unit 1b checks the timer with respect to the time measuring unit 1c (ST14), determines that a predetermined time has elapsed, and determines that a time-out has occurred (ST15). The timeout means that the communication adapter 1B has not received the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device 3 within a predetermined time, and the communication path between the gateway device 3 and the communication adapter 1B is interrupted. It represents that.

  Therefore, the determination unit 1b once resets and restarts the communication adapter 1B (ST16). After resetting, the determination unit 1b instructs the information creation unit 1d to create communication adapter configuration information, and the information creation unit 1d creates communication adapter configuration information based on this instruction (ST17). However, the created communication adapter configuration information includes a flag indicating that the communication path is disconnected and the communication adapter 1B has been reset. Communication adapter configuration information including the created flag is transmitted to gateway device 3 (ST18).

  The gateway device 3 acquires the communication adapter configuration information transmitted from the communication adapter 1B. The gateway device 3 creates a communication adapter list based on the acquired communication adapter configuration information, and stores in the storage means information indicating the reset of the communication adapter 1B due to a communication path interruption included in the communication adapter configuration information (flag is set). (ST19). The stored information indicating the reset is used as, for example, repair information when the communication adapter 1B or the home electric appliance 2B including the communication adapter 1B breaks down.

  The created communication adapter list is transmitted by broadcast transmission from the gateway device 3 to each communication adapter as regular transmission (ST20).

  When the communication path is secured, the communication adapter 1B can receive the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device 3. When the communication adapter list is received, the determination unit 1b determines whether the content is the same as the communication adapter configuration information transmitted to the gateway device 3 including the flag (ST21). When it is confirmed that the communication adapter configuration information in the received communication adapter list is its own information, the judging means 1b turns off the flag that has been set (ST22), and instructs the time measuring means 1c to start the timer again. (ST23).

  Further, the time measuring means 1c is started to measure time, and the information creating means 1d is instructed to create communication adapter configuration information again (ST24). The communication adapter configuration information created here does not include a flag indicating that the communication path as described in step 13 is not available. Then, the created communication adapter configuration information is transmitted to the gateway device 3 (ST25).

  Gateway device 3 acquires the communication adapter configuration information transmitted from communication adapter 1B, and creates a communication adapter list (ST26). The created communication adapter list is transmitted to each communication adapter 1 by broadcast transmission (ST27).

  The communication adapter 1B acquires its own communication adapter configuration information in the transmitted communication adapter list, and the determination unit 1b confirms it (ST28). It becomes clear that the communication channel between the communication adapter 1B and the gateway device 3 is secured by the communication adapter 1B acquiring its own communication adapter configuration information. In the communication adapter 1B, the determination unit 1b instructs the timing unit 1c to temporarily reset the timer, and starts the timer again (ST29, ST30). Thereafter, the communication adapter configuration information is transmitted to the gateway device 3 at every predetermined time set in the communication adapter 1B as in the case where the communication path is normally secured (see ST10 to ST13).

  By adopting such a configuration, by confirming the contents between the communication adapter configuration information and the own communication adapter configuration information in the communication adapter list between each communication adapter and the gateway device, It is possible to quickly determine whether or not the communication path with the gateway device has been properly secured, and when communication failure occurs between multiple wireless devices, the communication adapter resets itself again. It is possible to provide a communication system and a communication system recovery method that can ensure the reliability of communication by ensuring the communication path recovery in order to secure the communication path.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above embodiments. For example, some constituent elements may be deleted from all the constituent elements shown in the embodiments, and constituent elements in different embodiments may be appropriately combined.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Communication adapter 1a ... Reception means 1b ... Judgment means 1c ... Time measuring means 1d ... Information preparation means 1e ... Transmission means 2 ... Home appliance 3 ... Gateway apparatus 4 ... Access point S ... Communication system

Claims (4)

A communication adapter that periodically transmits information about home appliances;
A gateway device that collects and collects the information transmitted from the communication adapter together to create a communication adapter list and periodically transmits the communication adapter list to all of the communication adapters;
A communication system comprising: The communication adapter is
A time measuring means for measuring a predetermined time;
Detecting whether or not the time measured by the time measuring means has elapsed, and determining that the communication adapter is restarted as a communication failure if it is determined that has elapsed;
Information creating means for collecting information related to the home appliance to transmit to the gateway device;
The communication system according to claim 1, further comprising:   When the determination unit determines that a communication failure has occurred, the determination unit instructs the information generation unit to include a flag indicating that in the information to be transmitted to the gateway device. The communication system according to claim 1 or 2. The communication adapter receives periodic transmission from the gateway device, and starts measuring time in the time measuring means;
The communication adapter creating information on home appliances as transmission data to the gateway device; and
Transmitting the created transmission data to the gateway device;
Receiving the transmission data transmitted from each of the communication adapters, creating a communication adapter list based on the transmission data;
Periodically broadcasting the created communication adapter list to all of the communication adapters;
Confirming the timekeeping in the timekeeping means, if the communication adapter list is not received beyond a set time, a time-out, and resetting the communication adapter;
Including a flag indicating a communication failure, the communication adapter creating information on the home appliance as transmission data with a flag to the gateway device;
Transmitting the created transmission data with flag to the gateway device;
Receiving the flagged transmission data and storing the flag in a storage device, and creating a communication adapter list based on the transmission data;
The communication adapter that has received the communication adapter list transmitted from the gateway device confirms whether or not its transmission data exists in the communication adapter list;
A communication system recovery method comprising:

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